Death through Acting
by true-haruhism
Summary: Kyoko meets Sho after a long while. Just what will happen!
1. Chapter 1

Skip BEAT fan-fic.   
**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN SKIP BEAT OR THE CHARACTERS.**

**This is purely a work of fan fiction. Hope this fan-fiction works. **

"I hate you."

Shou woke up with a start. He looked around in his room. What was that? The words "hate you" repeated like a spoilt broken record. That voice was definitely Kyoko. How could it not be? The voice he had heard for 15 years mysteriously vanished. His fault. The guilt penetrates through his beating heart.

"What the hell was that? That dream. Is it an impending warning to me that the girl would slaughter me for the upcoming movie they invited her to work with me? She accepted."

Beads of sweat trickled down his neck. "I don't need this. I don't need any unnecessary feelings for that girl. After all, she's just a friend/ maid. It was definitely right to make her slave to me for the last few years."

"Sho. Get ready. We are going for the morning interview for the upcoming movie you're shooting. Get your butt out of the bed."

"Yeah yeah, fine. Will be down soon, Shoko" Sho replied.

Shoko sighed. "It's better if he don't know this. For now. That Kyoko-chan is going to be interviewed with him."

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Kyoko dressed up in a long, elegant dress. Her used to be short hair had grown long enough. 6 months has passed and her career was going smoothly. This was the first time in a long while she will made contact with Sho. Her revenge against Sho was resting at the back of her head, till now.

"While this stupid dress was given to me specially by Sawara-san who forced me to wear this, I have to admit this looks pretty feminine in its own way. Heh. Shotaro, that stupid idiot. I'll use this as the first step to defeat you and make you beg on your knees. I'll steal the limelight from you. Hooo-hoooohooo" She muttered while walking to the room where the interview would take place.

Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks. A familiar disgusting face flashed onto her eyes. His hair, his eyes, his pierce ears remained the same. To her, it was still the same disgusting man from the day he broke off with her. Sho.

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Sho stood rooted on the ground for what seemed like eternity. His mind ceased functioning for 1 minute before sanity reclaimed him a second after. "What is that girl doing here?! And where the hell did makeup less, uncharismatic Kyoko went to?!" he thought.

Kyoko took the initiative. She strode towards him with a walk that rivals a well-trained model. Her eyes glared at him. If it was the Kyoko from before, she could yell and make him lose face. But not this Kyoko. She was far too dignified and matured for that. 6 months has not passed by without her becoming a more matured person. She was going to trounce him gracefully. However, it didn't stop her demons who remembered her grudge from escaping out from her. Kyoko softly hissed "Die." to sho. The menacing aura was overwhelming.

"This girl, she's not going easy. But it suits me just fine. I can definitely deal with that girl. Definitely."

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	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2. **

**Thanks everyone for taking time to read the last chapter! Hope this will appeal to you as well! **

Kyoko's heart was thumping furiously. Her anger level was on the rise. The anger caused by idiot number 1 was killing her. The hate-o-meter shot up to 101. Seeing his face, knowing she has to co-star with him as the main heroine and even going so far as to have to even be on the same boat as him, everything made her mad. She knew, it was for a purpose, to steal the lime light from him, but to have to work with him? It sucked. It really did.

Her character was a beautiful, young, rich lady. She was dignified, graceful, the perfect ojou-sama. Her name was Kotomi Okazaki. She loved a man called Ruka Ichiou (Sho). However, this man cruelly rejected her for the sake of money. Then along came a man called Ginji. He was perfect. He was rich, beautiful, and extremely intelligent with a good personality to boot. Gradually, he fell in love with Kotomi, but had difficulty expressing himself because of Kotomi herself. Kotomi lost all confidence in love and faith. All she had left was an empty shell.

Kyoko knew, this character was the splitting image of her. While she found the concept of love stupid, she sympathized with her character. Beside, she finally had a chance to play what she wanted! "HOOOOO. Kotomi-sama, you are so so awesome!" She grinned.

"Huff—hhur. Finally found you, Kyoko-san! Please, head to the interview room now. Sho-san is waiting. Please make the interview a success!"

"Umm. Yes. Thank you." Kyoko headed to the interview room. Controlling her anger, she sat beside Sho. Sho sniggered. "So you came this far huh." He said.

"Watch it, idiot." Outwardly, she smiled. However, deep in her heart, she wanted to kill him. Only she can't do that. There are people watching.

"And we'll start the interview now! Cameras!"

Host: " Welcome now! We have Sho-san and Kyoko-san today! Unfortunately, actor for Ginji for the drama is absent due to circumstance. Anyway, both of you have come a long way. So, both of you are co-starring in the drama "Shooting Star". What are your thoughts, Kyoko-san?

Kyoko: "Well, I'm very grateful for being given this opportunity. My character is a very interesting character, and I look forward to playing her."

Host: Oooh. And what about Sho-san?

Sho: "I think this will be a good experience. I will do my best for the sake of my many fans."

Kyoko cringed. "Now what," she thought. "He's trying to compare the number of fans between me and him? Irritating!"

The interview lasted for a good 30 minutes. "Good work, both of you." the host said.

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Kyoko left in haste. She didn't want to see that idiot's face. Sho looked at the back of his "ex-maid". He didn't want to chase after her anyway.

"That was close, lucky I could cover some stupid feelings with some remarks. I mean, after 6 months, she really changed. But what was that feeling anyway? I know she's catching up. But no way am I going to be intimidated. "

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	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Sho sighed. So much for saying that he wasn't intimidated by Kyoko. He couldn't help remembering her. Everything about her, her smell, her laugh during the interview, and her smile, everything. There was one word that perfectly described him now. Intoxicated. He's totally intoxicated with Kyoko. And more than anything else, he wanted her. Yes, he wanted to be that perfect character Ginji in that movie he's playing. Not that he has a choice. He has already accepted his character Ruka Ichiou, and beside, they said he was perfect for the role Ruka. He did, after all, give off that Casanova vibe. Skimming through his lines in the script under the dim light of his bedroom at night, there was a particular line that caught his attention.

'_It's over between you and me. You left me for money. A woman with more money than I. That's what appeal to you most right? You know what? Ruka, no, Ichiou-san, I hate you.' _

Kyoko's lines. That was Kyoko's line. And for some reason, it seems strangely familiar to Sho. He felt a strangely familiar sensation and it was bugging him. He recognized the similarity as the lines in his dreams yesterday. Why did it matter to him? Why? Sho couldn't understand. Sho shook his head. 'No. This is not what I should be worrying about.' He thought. 'Rather than that, who the hell is playing Ginji anyway? And, how the hell am I going to portray Ruka as a sexy, money-seeking man which is crucial in this movie?' Sho sighed. 'And, how am I going to act alongside Kyoko who's playing Kotomi?'

'_That's enough, Kotomi. Let's end it here.' _

Sho pondered over this line. 'How do I reflect this in my acting? Fierce? Determined? Hard on Kyoko who's acting as Kotomi?' he thought. Sho tried acting out this line in front of his mirror. Immediately, the image of Kyoko crying came to his mind. His heart started beating wildly. He turned away from the mirror. 'I'm going crazy. Stop!'

Kotomi, Ruka's lover turned enemy. Whatever it is, the striking resemblance between the characters relationship with his and Kyoko was too similar, he could just puke.

'This is just a movie. Get this in your head, you idiot.' Sho said aloud and bang his head on the wall. Sho continued reading the script, scanning through the lines, particularly those interactions between his character Ruka, and Kyoko's character, Kotomi.

**Ruka: **_'Don't look at him, don't talk to him and don't even laugh when you're with him!' _

**Kotomi: **_'Why? We have nothing to do with each other already. Have you forgotten? We are OVER.' _

**Ruka: **_'Because I don't want you with him!' _

**Kotomi**_: 'What does that matter to you?' _

**Ruka**: '_I love you. Is that enough of a reason?' _

Sho wanted to puke. Saying that to Kyoko, his childhood friend/maid, now that's called irony.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Yashiro sighed as he walked towards Ren. The heavy atmosphere that he felt and that murderous aura that was being emitted out from Ren, it was driving him nuts. Enough is enough. Really, recently that murderous aura from Ren became more and more frequent, and it was bothering Yashiro. That was to be expected though. How could Ren bear it? Knowing that Kyoko, Sho is acting alongside each other was already a bomb in itself. Seeing the interview between Kyoko and Fuwa Sho on television made him mad. Jealous. Yeah, that was what Ren was feeling. But really, what could Ren do? The cast was already set.

Ren trembled with anger. Of all things! Why Fuwa Sho? Why not somebody else? Ren thought hard. The role, Ginji. It is still undecided yet, with veteran actor Kyo backing out of the movie due to personal reasons. Could he do it? Could he take that role, to ensure that that man, Fuwa, would not lay a single finger on Kyoko. Ren felt uneasy. He wanted that role more than anything else now. No, he needed this role. Yes, he needed it, and Ren decided, he would fight for the role. Never mind who his opponent was, he will get that role. He must.

'Ren. Ren!' That was Yashiro's voice. The concern and sense of urgency in Yashiro's voice was what jerked Ren back into reality from his deep thoughts.

'Ah. Sorry.' Ren replied apologetically.

'Yashiro, there's something important I need to know. Shooting Star… the movie, do you know anything about it?' Ren said.

Yashiro looked at Ren quizzically. 'Um, Kyoko-chan is playing Kotomi. And, Fuw-'

'Yes, Fuwa Sho is playing beside Kyoko. But what I really want to know is about the role Ginji.' Ren cut Yashiro short. Obviously, Ren was anxious. The anxious and flustered look on his face told him all. Priceless, Ren's face that is.

'Ginji?' Yashiro echoed.

'Yeah. I want to play that role.'

'I'll check it out for you.' Yashiro replied. He grinned at Ren. Yashiro thought, 'Ren is taking the initiative. Oh ho. This will be fun.'


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

'Listen, Ren. Whatever it is, stay calm. The role…Ginji, you're not the only one who wants that role. Beagle…' Yashiro paused. He chuckled to himself. Yashiro found himself being influenced by Kyoko-chan who often used the word beagle to describe Reino-san. He found that hilarious, unlike Ren whose face is not dissimilar to stone. Yashiro continued. 'I mean, Reino-san, wants that role too. The role is undecided, so this news hasn't gone public yet. Even the co-stars don't know about it. The director who happened to be Ogata confirmed this.'

Ren's face changed from stone to one of shock. Not being dramatic, but Yashiro could have sworn that Ren looked like his world came crashing down on him. Yashiro continued, 'Ren, if you want the role, you need to show that you can play that role better than him. You need to, impress the casting director. And of course, President Takarada too. Based on your schedule, you can fit in Shooting Star in and-'

'And?' Ren echoed. His voice could barely be heard in the incredibly noisy LME Company.

Yashiro grinned. 'And, you need this role, don't you. Fight for your looove.' Yashiro sang.

Ren stared at Yashiro, shell-shock. Yashiro had figured him out so well. It was as if nothing could escape his manager's eyes. Before Ren could say anything, Yashiro continued, 'Since I know you want this role, that, I can arrange your little audition. We can arrange for beagle, oops, Reino-san and the involved film makers to meet up, and then we'll see who make the better Ginji. That's fine with you right?'

Ren managed to regain his composure. He replied, 'That's fine. Thanks.'

'Don't mention it,' Yashiro said, grinning.

**BACK AT KYOKO'S HOME...**

Kyoko was majorly pissed. She had tried so hard to act normally as Kotomi. Yet she couldn't. Every time she read the lines between Kotomi and Ruka, especially those at the beginning of the script, she really felt like wrangling and strangling the neck of Shotaro. What '_please don't leave me, you can't! Because I need you!' _The script should have said, _'I've always known you were stupid, but dumping me really proof that you are not only stupid but also a fat jerk asshole, you ego-maniac, narcissist, stupid ass.' _Oh well, beggars can't be choosers, and she certainly didn't have a choice. She has chosen to act in this movie, and she certainly wouldn't quit. She has never been a quitter, and will never be. Curse Shotaro. Kyoko decided, she would trounce him so badly, that his pride would totally be shattered and he'll come back crawling on his ass begging Kyoko for forgiveness. Now, that is something she'll love to see.

Turning her focus back to her script, she continued reading her lines loudly. She needn't bother about embarrassment. After all, the comfort and quietness of her bedroom was perfect for rehearsing for the movie. '_Just watch me, you just watch me, Shotaro.' _Kyoko thought darkly.


End file.
